Hudson Valley Boy Wants to Send Holiday Cheer to Troops Overseas

A boy from the Lower Hudson Valley is asking for help as he hopes to spread holiday cheer to soldiers who can't come home because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Trey Rolnick, an eighth-grader at Felix Festa Middle School in West Nyack, wants to spread holiday cheer to soldiers who won't be able to come home for the holidays due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Soldiers are trained to survive the unexpected, but no one could have prepared for the unexpected events of this year. US Soldiers stationed and deployed around the world have worked harder, longer and differently this year than ever before. Let us show them our gratitude," Dawn Rolnick wrote in a GoFundMe for Trey. "Because of COVID, many young men and women in the military have been unable to travel home or see their loved ones for extended periods of time. Also, quarantine and/or stay at home mandates have made it challenging for them to obtain essential goods."

Trey got the idea because his sister, Sam, and her battalion of 170 soldiers haven't been allowed to return home from Italy for over a year. Trey says Sam is his "best friend" and he misses her "terribly."  He started Operation Santa: Sam’s Soldiers to "show her that I love her and think about her every single day."

The GoFundMe is collecting funds for all soldiers, including Sam, who are stationed in one of the hardest-hit regions of COVID-19. As of this writing, over $11,640 has been raised. All the funds will be used to gather essential goods for holiday care packages for US Soldiers.

Below are photos of Trey and his best friend: